Driving the news:
The Guardian reported that settlers' assaults and intimidation campaigns have escalated in recent days as Palestinian farmers rush to harvest their olive trees before the end of the season. The report cites dozens of new incidents of vandalism, land raids, and physical attacks targeting Palestinian communities.
Why it matters:
The rise in settlers' violence threatens to inflame tensions across the occupied territories at a moment when the ceasefire in Gaza is already fragile. It also underscores longstanding concerns about systematic efforts by armed settler groups to forcibly displace Palestinians under the protection of Israeli forces.
State of play:
UN monitors recorded more than 260 settler attacks causing casualties or property damage in the past month alone — the highest number ever documented in a single month since monitoring began nearly two decades ago.
What he is saying:
Aviv Tatarsky, a civil society activist who has worked in the West Bank for decades, described the current climate starkly: “The situation is really bad now. The settlers operate with full impunity.”
Key points:
- Violence is widespread across most areas of the West Bank.
- Palestinians report a coordinated harassment campaign from armed Israeli settler groups.
- The surge coincides with the olive harvest season, when farmers are most vulnerable.
- The pattern of attacks includes vandalizing vehicles, raiding agricultural lands, and assaulting farmers.
Zoom in:
Recent incidents
Local reports documented multiple attacks over the weekend:
Early Sunday, settlers damaged vehicles on the outskirts of Sinjil, south of Nablus, and raided farmlands near the village of al-Mughayir.
On Saturday, a farmer in Beit Furik, east of Nablus, was assaulted, and his crops were destroyed.
Go deeper:
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